On another blog, the writer (a Gen Xer) invited reminiscences of where we were when we learned that Challenger exploded, the loss of the astronauts, and ultimately how we dealt with the discovery that NASA was not infallible in allowing a manned shuttle to launch when it provably should not have. 28 January 1986. Many X-ers posted their early memories, as well as those of us who were Boomers, working and in the adult world, including those who had ties to NASA, Morton Thiokol (the O rings), Lockheed, and other NASA vendors. Ultimately, Challenger had a great effect on us. This article is adapted from my comment there.

On that date, this Editor was nowhere near healthcare. She was in the airline business in advertising. New York Air was a a post-deregulation airline, largely forgotten today, headquartered at LaGuardia Airport NYC. Despite being red in color, it, the people, and her time there remains evergreen in memory.

On that day, we had a small crisis to deal with that had links to Challenger. Permit this short indulgence and diversion, if you would like to read on. (more…)